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Special School Seminar: Building synapse specific functionality: The role of β–neurexin cell-adhesion molecules

Dr Garrett Anderson, The Sudhof Laboratory, The Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, USA

Dr Anderson's PhD thesis at the University of Minnesota involved research of G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling mechanisms governing dopamine and opioid action in the basal ganglia region of the brain. In this work he investigated the signaling roles of regulators of GPCR signaling (RGS) protein complexes, detailing how these complexes are specified, dynamically regulated, and function in controlling the signaling pathways hijacked by drugs of abuse in the brain’s reward neural circuitry.

His postdoctoral work at Stanford University involves researching the synaptic functionality of cell-adhesion molecules that have been associated with the development of neurodevelopmental diseases such as Autism Spectrum Disorders. His focus during this work has been to understand cell-adhesion molecule functionality as scaffolding organizers in controlling GPCR signaling systems at the synapse. Investigating a group of cell adhesion molecules known as β-neurexins, he went on to characterize their role in dictating endocannabinoid GPCR function at specific synaptic connections in the hippocampus.

Date & time

10–11am 21 March 2016

Location

Seminar Rooms 1 and 2, The John Curtin School of Medical Research, 131 Garran Rd, ANU